Hard Left
by Beckon
Summary: Sonya laughed at the remark, feeling the brute honesty in his words- and admitting that one of them needed to say it. "You know, I think I'm beginning to see a solution to our future problems here," she teased. [MK11!AU]


There was just something about being thrown haphazardly into the future that Sonya didn't account for.

Other than simply not expecting it.

Coming face-to-face with her future self was one thing- which was something that needed to be tackled on its own.

But seeing the life that came after twenty-five passing years was another.

She was the Special Forces General.

She was the head of Earthrealm's entire defense, the right-hand woman to Raiden himself. She could control the entire army from her office; with a simple command, she had thousands of soldiers waiting for her order, waiting for her to pick a target and let them go. She was strong in arms with the Lin Kuei, the Shirai Ryu, and the Shaolin- even on a personal level with each ranking Grandmaster.

And to come from the early timeline where the Shirai Ryu didn't exist and the Lin Kuei was fracturing under a cybernetic dictatorship, Sonya almost didn't believe it at first- not without seeing the visual evidence for herself.

It almost made her current rank of Lieutenant seem so lowly and arbitrary now.

In her father's absence, she had surpassed him and every person in her family who had served in the Special Forces.

If learning about her future had stopped right there, Sonya would've been beyond astonished to see how far she had come, to see how much she had accomplished in as little as two decades time. She had surpassed her own expectations of where her life would go, of how far the Special Forces would take her.

But of course, shit never stopped when it was good.

Sonya found out that apparently not only had she married that _asshole_ after the Tournament, which was bad enough on its own, she had also had a kid with him as well. And then she stayed married to him for twenty years before he apparently divorced her under claims of the love running out between them- and her selfish attachment to her job.

That- _that_ was just too much to deal with.

She had enough shit to deal with considering the Tournament they had just left behind them, in which they were beginning to see how the rules were being twisted and bent against them. And now, in this future timeline, she had to find out that she was only one of three people who had survived it; the other two being Raiden and Mr. Movie Star, but not Jax.

So that was also difficult to comprehend, to realize that she was less than a day away from seeing Earthrealm's greatest fighters get outright demolished in a Tournament that had been rigged against them from the start.

And now they had this Time Titan breathing down their necks and talking about erasing this timeline just so she could do a hard-reset on everything.

_Again_.

Which, that was another thing too.

This wasn't the first time any of them had done this.

For all Sonya knew, this was the hundredth time she had gone through this same fucking scenario.

She had to excuse herself from the crowded communications room, complaining that she needed some fresh air and that she just needed some quiet time alone to get her thoughts together; a blatant shutdown towards Cage, who had jumped at the idea of tagging along with her, no doubt to try and get some alone time with her.

Gods, ever since the movie star found out that they would get married in the future, he seemed to think that she was his wife right now.

As far as she was concerned, if they won this thing and made it back to the Tournament in one piece, she would do whatever she had to to not follow in the same footsteps as her future had.

Which, as strong of an opinion as that was, it was a bit of a shame considering that her apparent daughter seemed like a decent enough soldier.

But Cassie wasn't enough to convince her to go through the same grueling fate that her future self had- even if it meant changing her role in the Special Forces. Sonya was just happy to be ranked, to be involved with the military, to be involved with the work Raiden was doing for Earthrealm; she didn't need to be General, and if that was something she had to give up in order to live her own life, then she was willing to sacrifice it.

"Lieutenant Blade-"

"I _said_ I wanted to be alone!" Sonya snapped without regard at the call of her name.

The vehicle garage was empty of soldiers and personnel and had seemed like the perfect place for her to mentally vent out her frustrations. Based on body language alone, it should've been obvious that she didn't want anyone to speak to her, let alone acknowledge her until she was fit and ready to step back into this shit of a situation.

Which, given, was a lot to ask at the moment- but it wouldn't hurt some people to try.

"I must've missed that memo."

Sonya turned towards her infuriating guest, ready to tear someone a new asshole, even if it was herself.

But she felt herself stop before anything came out as she realized her uninvited guest was the blind swordsman from the Tournament.

Kenshi had stepped out about a half-hour earlier, complaining about the noise and the growing crowd just as she had- as well as mentioning something about how being ripped through time had fucked with his senses and thrown off his balance. Even she had to admit that he had looked rather unwell before and figured he had stepped out to find someplace to puke.

Sonya just hoped that when he mentioned how the time-jumping have thrown off his balance, he meant his physical balance- and not the one that was keeping him from going awol and killing everyone.

A drastic, and unproven theory admittedly.

After all, she only knew the swordsman from the few times they had crossed paths during the Tournament. And from the times she had watched a few of his fights while her and Jax were waiting for information from Raiden; the swordsman liked to chat her up after his fights, carrying on a conversation that was somewhere between casual and flirting. Sonya usually just ignored the second part, but once she saw how much it irritated the movie star and realized that Kenshi was doing it on purpose, she let the behavior slide.

But she had heard a few stories and rumors about the man from Raiden, who had advised her to keep a sharp eye on the swordsman when he was around. He never gave her any specifics, just that he had once been a dangerous man in his younger youth, and that there was potential that that same behavior was still alive inside of him.

All in all, they weren't complete strangers- but they weren't exactly straight allies either.

"Yeah well, you can write it down now," Sonya replied, trying to go easier with her tone now- giving the man some leeway since he had left before she had, and had missed out on her previous warning. "Where'd you run off to?"

"No idea," Kenshi answered, giving her a shrug with his response. "Never been on a military base before, pretty sure I got lost somewhere along the way with all the noise going on. Your energy lit up like a beacon so I just followed it back here."

Most military bases were pretty hard to navigate on their own, let alone being blind and completely out of your own element. And given that this was where her future self was stationed, this base was much larger than most- and more complicated as well, given the multitude of garages and storage around the place. Hell, even she wasn't convinced that she'd be able to find her way around here. Not right off the bat anyways.

"I can walk you back if you want," Sonya offered- and almost immediately regretted the offer.

She wasn't ready to go back into that coms room, not right now anyways, but if she took him back then there was a good chance that she would get roped into doing something in there. And she was not in the right headspace for that.

"I'm in no rush," Kenshi replied. "I was panicking too much to get through my own thoughts; I'll just join you in silence."

Sonya chuckled at the remark, wondering if the swordsman was just pulling an act around her- or if he really had gotten himself worked up by getting lost, if that had really been the case anyways. "At least tell me that you're not thinking of picking something up around here."

"I was thinking about it," he admitted, "I haven't decided on anything yet though. I'm not sure if I've ever picked up something as heavy as a tank before, it could be a new experience."

"How do you know what a tank is?" she questioned.

"I don't really- but there was this voice I could hear that was begging me not to try and pick up the tank."

She didn't want to laugh and make him think it was appropriate to read her thoughts back to her, but she found herself doing it anyways- against her better judgment. It felt like a nice break from the severity of the situation; not to mention just the mental imagery of him straining to lift a tank off of the maintenance lift was enough to shift her sour mood.

"I thought you were going to be joining me in silence," Sonya reminded.

"I said that but I didn't mean it."

She shook her head, wondering if there was any reason to understand the man to begin with.

"I don't have anything else going on," Kenshi continued, "- and if I see my future self one more time, he might drive the both of us crazy."

"He didn't seem that bad to me," she remarked.

To say that she was surprised to see his future self here to begin with was an understatement. Knowing Kenshi as she did now, which admittedly wasn't by much, he was a self-proclaimed lone wolf who liked to operate under his own rules and agenda; she had made a remark before about having him join the Special Forces due to his telekinetic abilities, but he had shot her down.

She figured that had been the end of it, only to be pulled into the future to find him here, on a Special Forces base, working alongside her as a special case Consultant. The fact that he had an actual title made the situation even weirder; it meant that he had been around long enough to be considered on payroll.

Two decades had done something to the man however, considering that his future self looked almost polar opposite to him now.

Kenshi was rather polished and refined in his appearance, despite said appearance being dressed in a full suit of plated armor; which, even to Earthrealm standards, was odd-looking. But it was the way he carried himself, the way he conducted himself in and out of the arena that seemed to paint the picture of just who and what the illusive blind swordsman was.

All in all, he looked exactly how one might assume and picture a man like him would look like.

His future self on the other hand, was different. He was rugged with graying hair and a full beard, although it was interesting to note that he still kept his hair smoothed back like it was now- abet, it was a little longer now. And gone was the full suit of armor, although it had been replaced with a patchwork of armor instead, so he didn't quite stray too far from his initial appearance. It seemed like his future self relayed more on leather than metal now, choosing flexibility over practically- which left certain areas of his body more protected than others.

In terms of build, the Kenshi she knew was slender and well-maintained, only exercising and building the areas he needed.

His future self was a little thicker, having packed on more muscle, seemingly focusing on more physical attacks between telekinetic ones now.

"He doesn't appear bad," Kenshi agreed, loosely at that, "but what you see and what I see are two very different things. And what I see is something, someone, I've been trying to avoid becoming."

Kenshi was always articulate with his words- but this time, she didn't like what he had to say.

"And what's that?" Sonya questioned.

Given the way he seemed to cock his head in response, she didn't expect an answer.

And in reality, she didn't really deserve one either.

He had his problems and she had her own.

There was no need to cross the streams on that one.

"You think I'm some kind of time bomb waiting to go off and go awol," Kenshi spoke, projecting her own thoughts right back to her. "And in some sense, you're not wrong. I'll save you the details, but just know that my future is on the brink of losing control and unleashing thousands of possessive souls- and I don't think he knows it yet."

Sonya liked to have confirmation that she was right about something.

But this wasn't one of them.

"Uh, don't you think that's something you should bring up with him?" she pressed. "How do you know what will happen?"

"Because I've heard the stories about it, lost more than half my bloodline to it," he replied. "I can't imagine he doesn't know what's going on, but the fact that he's here, around so many people, knowing what could happen if Sento's seals break is... irresponsible. Not to mention, he's carrying all the excessive energy around with his son close by."

She didn't like that Kenshi seemed both concerned and yet casual about the situation.

He seemed more concerned about his future self's disinterest rather than the possibility of... whatever could happen actually happening.

"Don't worry over it," Kenshi spoke, no doubt reading her discomfort over the matter. "I'm sure he has everything under control."

"You didn't seem certain about that ten seconds ago," Sonya reminded.

"Well I'd like to have faith that he's smarter than I am now."

Sometimes, she really couldn't deal with this man.

And she was still certain that he was just flipping on the issue to toy with her.

But in the end, she supposed it wasn't the biggest issue they needed to be dealing with right now- and for all intents and purposes, it wasn't her problem either. It was his future, and his future self, and it was between the two of them to handle it.

Still, there was something Kenshi had mentioned that had stuck with her.

She apparently had Cassie, and he had a son- Takeda, was it?

Everyone who had survived the Tournament had moved on and created the next generation of fighters, the next generation to protect Earthrealm when their inevitable time was up. It should've been a refreshing feeling, but she still had her complaints about it.

"It's weird, isn't it?" Sonya remarked, hoping a change in topic would ease her mind a little more. "Having a kid."

"I wanted my bloodline to end with me, but... Shirai Ryu certified, right-hand to the Grandmaster, not to mention he inherited my telepathy, it's not a bad place to be at his age," Kenshi started. "I don't know him, but I'm impressed regardless- and my future self is quite proud of him."

"He looks just like you, you know," she spoke.

"I wouldn't."

Sonya punched him on the arm in response and heard him laugh in return. "Well maybe that makes one thing we have in common then," she replied. "I didn't want a kid either but apparently something happened between then and now that changed that."

"Why not?" he questioned.

"Honestly, the same reason you had," she shrugged. "I'm the last of the immediate Blade family. My father disappeared and was never found, my mother died the year before, and Daniel died three years ago. I knew what I was signing up for when I joined the Special Forces and I'm determined to dedicate my life to protecting Earthrealm- and as bad as it sounds, having a family would get in the way of that."

"Even with a family, you still made it to General," Kenshi reminded.

"Sure, but at what cost?" Sonya countered. "From what I've learned, it seems like it would've been a lot easier without all the unnecessary drama. And come on, Johnny Cage? Did I lose my fucking mind? Did I just get desperate somewhere down the line and get cold feet about the whole dedicating my life thing? Did I sleep with him out of curiosity and get knocked up from a one-night stand? When did I let my life go to shit? And why?"

Her evident frustration over the whole situation was coming out.

Which only unpacked a lot more of her reservations over this whole situation than she intended to.

Twenty-five years was a big jump to take on though.

And she should've figured that planning her life at twenty-six was too early.

"Maybe... maybe we're both judging our future selves too harshly," Kenshi offered, a soothing sort of attempt to quell the shared venting between them. "Something somewhere along the line happened and our priorities changed- and given that the only people who know us the most are ourselves, we have to admit that it must've been something big that shifted our entire lives like this. Right?"

Sonya shrugged at first, unwilling to accept the answer at first.

And then quickly admitting that he had a point.

Her future self looked like she had been put through the ringer one too many times. She had no doubt that post-Tournament, post losing every one of Earthrealm's fighters must've been Hell to go back home to; Hell, just knowing now that she had lost Jax was enough to make her rethink their involvement with the Tournament.

"I guess you're on to something," Sonya admitted. "It's something to think on anyways. I mean, Cassie seems like a good kid; she's a Commander now, she's climbing up the ranks just like I did. She has Cage's flair to her, but I can see myself in her as well- which is a saving grace if you ask me. I just... I get the impression that I might've fucked up her life somewhere along the way."

"You and me both," Kenshi remarked, "- which is why neither of us should've been parents to begin with."

She laughed at the remark, feeling the brute honesty in his words- and admitting that one of them needed to say it. "You know, I think I'm beginning to see a solution to our future problems here," Sonya teased.

"Yeah?" he mused, catching on to her words. "Maybe you should describe it to me."

That was his go-to response whenever someone made a remark about seeing something around him.

In fairness, he seemed to enjoy poking fun at himself for his blindness- and he wasn't afraid to point it out to people who seemed to forget about it either. Which was easy to do considering.

But this time, his response was said in a different tone, marked up in a different way.

Or maybe that was just how she interpreted it.

Reaching out, Sonya slipped her fingers underneath the plating of his chest armor before she pulled him in against her; her other hand grabbed at the back of his head as she guided his lips to her own.

It was- spontaneous, a motion made purely in the moment.

But when she felt the connecting warm heat of his mouth, the responding tug of his hands tangling in her jacket, the art of logic and responsibility went out. Lips parted almost immediately and Sonya felt how hot his tongue was in her mouth as Kenshi kissed her firm in return, as he moved his hands to the neck-cuff of her jacket to better hold her in against him.

She didn't think much about their actions; this wouldn't be the first time she had kissed someone in one of the SF garages, using the shadow of a deconstructed tank to conceal the act- as oddly specific as it might sound.

Sonya only focused on how good it felt, on how good he felt against her.

This felt like the one thing she could control, the one thing she could change in this mess of timelines and time Titans.

And she clung to it, more possessive than not.

Maybe a little too much, a little too hard, but neither of them seemed to care for the consequences.

Not for now at least.

[Especially not with the looming danger of an impending rewind.]

"You know, this wasn't the kind of description I was expecting," Kenshi remarked as their lips came away, "- but I'm not going to complain."

"You can try, but I'm not taking criticisms at this time," Sonya replied.

"Fine by me."

Kenshi pulled her back in this time, picking up where they had left off; his hands gripped her jacket tighter between his fingers as he kept her anchored against him. She felt his tongue part her lips once more and moved her hands to cup his face as he did, moaning softly at the shared heat between them- only to feel the way he seemingly flinched underneath her sudden grab.

It was a subtle reaction, but it was enough to cause her to pull away.

"I'm not used to people touching my face," Kenshi remarked, quick to answer the question she had yet to ask, "or skin for that matter."

"Dressed up like this, I'm not surprised," Sonya replied. "And considering how the future you dresses the same, I'm starting to think you're hiding something underneath all this armor."

"Is that so?" he spoke, and the subtle curl on his lips seemed to imply amusement. "I'm sure you'd like to find out."

Sonya scoffed lightly at the remark before she moved her fingers to brush over his lips now, feeling the warmth of her own on them- and feeling the way they grinned underneath her touch. "If the situation wasn't dire, I'd take you up on the offer," she replied. "How about we compromise and you show me what you're hiding underneath this blindfold of yours?"

"Nothing special, just a pair of blind eyes."

She grabbed him by the chin and pulled him into another kiss, feeling the amused grin that kissed back against her now. "We're risking a lot by being out here, what say we find somewhere a little more secluded- and maybe with a door lock," she offered. "And maybe you could show me this compromise?"

"Are we both open to admitting how odd this situation is playing out?" Kenshi questioned.

"Is it stranger than everything else going on?" Sonya countered.

"You're a smart one."

She would take that as a compliment- and as reason to move forward.

Taking him by the hand, Sonya walked the two of them out of the garage and into the adjoined corridor, where she moved further away from the communications room and further into the military base.

A voice at the back of her head was telling her that this wasn't the most rational thing to be doing- as clearly pointed out by the both of them. And she supposed some part of her was almost hoping that by the time they did find a door to lock this... sparked behavior and feelings would have fizzled out. And that they would both admit to the mistake and carry on like nothing had happened between them.

And yet, Sonya found herself quickly shouldering open the first door labeled as a supply room.

The room was dimly lit and filled with metal storage lockers and cabinets, with the occasional stack of unopened boxes in the corner. There was a small folding table in the middle of the room, with two folded chairs on top of it, but little else in terms of furniture.

But the important thing was that it was empty.

And that there was zero hint of her rationality coming back to stop her at the last minute.

Sonya pulled Kenshi in after her, closing the door behind them, before she pushed him further into the room- figuring it was best not to stand in front of the door. Not that it really mattered though, they were going to look suspicious to anyone who might unfortunately barge in, regardless of where they were standing.

Still, it made her feel a little better knowing that they could potentially duck out of sight if they were fast enough.

Grabbing Kenshi by the forearms, Sonya pushed him up against one of the lockers and heard the metallic clang of his armor when he was pressed against it. She felt his hands grab her by the hips and pull them in against him first, before his hands trailed up her back to pull the rest of her in next. She kissed him once more and felt how easily his lips gave away to her tongue.

Her hands climbed up from his forearms, grabbing at each piece of armor they passed over until her fingers were grasping at his shoulders, pulling him down to her.

It was almost frustrating how every inch of him was covered up; the armor was one thing, but the thick bodysuit underneath it was another.

Even when there was a reprieve between the plating, it wasn't like she could get much of a feel for him.

It was understandable.

Frustrating but understandable.

Feeling the press of armor against her, Sonya barely felt his hands move around her; not until she felt how he cradled the curve of her ribs in his palms, until she felt how he pushed his hands up and underneath her jacket now. Fingers curled into the wrinkles of her half shirt and tugged lightly at the fitted material, reminding her of where it cut off just below her ribs.

And somehow that reminded her of how humid this base was, which given that it was apparently in the middle of a desert, she wasn't surprised.

But it still made her skin feel dry.

And having his armor pressed against her only made it feel worse.

When Sonya felt the pull of his lips at the next break for air, she leaned back and wrestled off her jacket- tossing it off and vaguely hearing where it might've landed on the folding table.

Spur of the moment kind of thinking, but she was feeling hot now and wanted it off.

"It was just my jacket," Sonya remarked, noting his mildly confused expression.

"Shame I can't extend the same courtesy," Kenshi replied.

He tentatively moved a hand to brush his fingertips against her bare arm now, before he trailed them down along her bicep until he touched the cuff of her gauntlet. There was an odd easiness to his gesture, and yet a sense of hesitation as well.

Asides from his face, Kenshi's fingertips were the only other part of him that were exposed.

And whether that was done to make his telekinetic powers easier to dish out was just a theory she had.

But Sonya felt the way he trailed his fingers along the length of her arm, almost like a subconscious gesture- and she couldn't help but to wonder just how often he got to touch skin outside of battle, outside of violence. He was a loner, although this situation seemed to say otherwise, but his actions seemed to reveal that he wasn't quite used to touching by his own accord.

His suit of armor provided him protection; it covered his blind spots- his words, not hers- but it also shut him out of any semblance of touch, regardless of motive.

It would explain why he had been so put off by her touching his face before.

Maybe not put off, but definitely surprised by it.

"It's a real shame," Sonya agreed, as she took him by the hands and moved them to brush against her neck before she cupped them against her face. "I take it I can only get zero or a hundred percent of you? _All_ or nothing?"

Kenshi seemed distracted by her guidance, making it easier for her to pull him back down to her.

Making it easier for her to trace her fingertips over his lips again before she brought them to her own, parting them with her tongue once more. Her hands moved to grip at the exposed portion of his bodysuit, just around his neck and collarbones; she squeezed against the thick material- and managed to feel the way he squirmed in response to it.

That was probably about as close as she was going to get to a proper reaction.

Her own thoughts had slowed them down but as she moved her hands to grab at his face once more, Sonya felt the way his fingers curled against her cheeks; she felt the re-focused energy behind his lips as Kenshi held her firm against him now.

It was a working mess of her hands against his face, of her fingers pushing through his hair now, gripping at him in what felt like desperation; a desperation where she kept wanting him, needing him, where she wanted to burn with the heat of his mouth against her own. And Kenshi met her weakness with his own as he gripped at her jaw, as he moved his hands to her neck, to her shoulders, back to her waist- now taking full advantage of her exposed skin.

His palms were still leather, but his fingertips were callous and warm.

They prodded at her waist, at her ribs, before they curled underneath her shirt and pushed it up- up and over her breasts.

Sonya heard herself give a muffled groan as Kenshi's hands brushed against her tightly-packed breasts, before she fumbled a hand to undo the front zipper of her sports bra. It took a few frustrating tugs before she got the zipper down, before she peeled off the front layer and moved to unclip the cups inside.

Her sense of rationality didn't kick in until after she had already felt the restrain of her bra give out.

And by then, his hands had found their way around her exposed breasts, covering them up with his palms now as he squeezed them in his hold.

And there was no denying the moan Sonya gave in response as she broke away from his lips- pulling in a sharp inhale as she felt his fingers tuck underneath her breasts, while his thumbs circled over her nipples. He was quick with the motion; there were no doubts now that he wasn't nearly as inexperienced as she thought he might've been.

It was a bold move on his part, but it didn't go unprompted either.

Kenshi leaned back into her, kissing her softer on the lips now- lingering between each one, allowing her to focus more on his hands instead.

In all fairness, they came into this with no idea of what they were going to do, or how far they were going to go; although it seemed pretty obvious that they couldn't go much further than this.

Mostly due to timing- which wasn't made to set it up as a challenge, although she was tempted by it.

And temptation burned in her fingertips as Sonya moved a hand between his thighs and found the opening between his armor, which allowed her to rub her fingers against his textured bodysuit once more. It wasn't as good as touching bare skin, but she felt the way he jerked in reaction to it again- which only encouraged her to put more weight and pressure behind her prodding fingers.

Kenshi murmured a soft groan against her lips.

"That's a little dirty, Lieutenant," he whispered.

"Oh? _This_ is what you would call dirty?" Sonya mused, before she moved her hand to cup the armor between his legs. And once more, despite her touch being restricted, she still felt him respond to it; she felt the way his hips seemed to lift at the sudden grab. "Because it feels like I'm just trying to keep things in balance, don't you think?"

"You're making it hard to, to be honest."

She chuckled and coaxed him to kiss her on the lips once more.

This was ridiculous in every way and manner.

There were more important things to focus on.

But all Sonya wanted to focus on was the pull between them, the warm connection shared- the subtle tight knot she felt in her stomach the longer he kissed her.

Or at least, that was what she wanted to focus on until she heard the sound of the supply room door being shoved open behind them; which, thankfully, had been loud enough for them to hear so that they could pull away from one another.

But even as she yanked her shirt back over her breasts, it really didn't make the situation appear any better.

They were still in a supply room, alone together.

Her dismantled bra was still peeking out from under her shirt, and for some reason she had failed to remove her hand from between his thighs.

It was pretty obvious what they were up to, or what they were getting up to.

[All that talk about having a locked door and she didn't even _lock_ this one.]

Sonya's first line of panic was thinking that the imposing visitor was someone she knew.

And she'd be embarrassed to Hell and back if it was Jax or Raiden.

And she'd be pissed if it was Cage, because then she would never hear the end of it; the dumbass would run his mouth about it, which meant that everyone else would hear about it too. And they had enough to deal with right now.

Instead, Sonya watched as her own future self stumbled into the supply room.

With Kenshi's future half close behind her.

Another dilemma that she didn't exactly foresee.

And one that continued to grow as Sonya watched Kenshi's future self grab her older half and push her up against the nearest supply cabinet- pinning her between it and his body. And there was no denying what they were doing; no denying the way their hands grappled with one another, no denying the way they were kissing and practically clawing at each other.

Clearly assuming that they themselves were alone too.

She found herself in a cross somewhere between stunned and dumbfounded, trying to figure out just what the fuck was going on with this timeline.

Sonya had _just_ been in the communications room with them, half listening to the issues at hand, and half observing how all of their future selves were interacting. Save for Jax's future half, who was absent- although her future self eventually got him on the phone, which somehow escalated into an argument between them. But she had seen herself and Kenshi interacting and nothing she witnessed would've indicated or hinted to this kind of behavior.

And her future self seemed pretty hard-pressed to let people know what she thought about them.

Then again, here she was, doing the exact same thing with little to no prior interaction either.

It was difficult not to stare, but was also kind of weird- especially considering that Sonya was technically just watching herself.

Here she was, ripped from her own timeline and forced into the presenting future, where she was surrounded by the surprise of a daughter and an ex-husband.

And yet, here was her future self, Head General of the Special Forces, making out in the same supply room that she was- and making out with the same guy that she was as well.

For a moment, Sonya glanced back to Kenshi and noted that, even with his eyes covered, she could see the equally confused and surprised look on his face as well. She couldn't help but to think back on how he had mentioned before that they would always see two different things, which just made her wonder what exactly he was seeing for himself.

It was like watching seconds before disaster struck, watching an in-motion train wreck- but with the train wreck being her own life, which was perhaps why she couldn't look away now.

Her future self had her hands cradling Kenshi's face, the same as she had been doing, but it was a mix between cradling and raking her fingers through his beard; a mix between gripping at the graying hairs and moving to grasp at his hair just the same. A constant flow of motion- up until her fingers grabbed at his blindfold and yanked it down.

Sonya watched as the older woman pulled away, just enough to let his blindfold fall down to his neck before her hands cupped his face once more. Before she pulled the swordsman back in and kissed him just below one of his eyes.

It was a gentle motion, one that lingered until he moved his hands to her face and pulled her back down to his lips.

A brief moment of gentleness that quickly melted and gave away to something else.

It wasn't until she watched the General unzip the front of her jacket and strip it off to toss it away- and having it land oddly close to where hers had- did Sonya feel the urge to say something. To maybe stop things from getting too far, especially as she watched the elder Kenshi slip his hands up underneath the General's shirt- which seemed to oddly mimic their own motions from before.

"What the _fuck_?"

Sonya didn't know what else to say- and those were the only words that came to mind.

She watched as the two of them broke away almost immediately at the question, which once more seemed to mirror the same action they had taken moments before. She got to watch as her future self hooked around to look at her- and _Christ_, did those eyes look like a hawk; Sonya could understand why everyone had seemed so nervous around the woman before, other than for the obvious reasons.

The General looked surprised at first before those same eyes shifted to look at Kenshi.

And again, there was no trying to deny the disheveled state of her quickly yanked down shirt- but it didn't help that Kenshi still had one hand tucked underneath it; the other hand had dropped to her waist. It also didn't help that she still had her own hand tucked between his thighs, still partly gripping the armored cup for some reason she couldn't quite focus on.

It felt like the sense of realization hit the four of them simultaneously.

And the tension in the air was heavy enough to be breathed in.

"... This room's occupied," Sonya finished.

She wasn't sure why she spoke in the first place- and it wasn't like what she said had any influence on the situation.

"This is fucked," her future self spoke, ignoring her remark, as the woman ran a hand down her face. Her other hand casually pushed Kenshi's future self back- although it seemed worth noting that the woman still kept her fingers curled around the leather strap that ran across his chest. "I can't even ask you what you're doing."

"Because I could ask the same thing," Sonya replied, "- and we'd both give the same answer."

Unfortunately, her future self didn't seem to appreciate the joke as well as she did.

Instead, the woman turned her attention back to Kenshi. "Just when we thought this day couldn't possibly get even more fucked up," the General remarked.

"You should see the humor in it," the elder Kenshi replied.

"When have I ever seen the humor in anything?" her future self pressed, which only made the other man chuckle in response.

Seemingly distracted, the woman reached up to adjust his blindfold, carefully pulling it up from his neck and helping him to slip it back into place- in which she also helped to smooth his hair back around it, before she brushed the wrinkles out of the red material.

Another odd gesture.

Sighing, the woman rubbed at the back of her neck before she turned her attention back to them, now looking a mix between exasperated and annoyed. "It goes without saying that not a _word_ of this can leave this room, is that understood?"

The one thing that was understood without needing to be said.

To a degree anyways.

"Can I at least ask-" Sonya started.

"_No_."

The snapping interruption seemed to have been planned ahead of time, like the woman knew full and well what she was going to say.

Her future self was a quick one.

No wonder everyone got out of her way like a shark parting the water.

"Well tough shit," Sonya remarked instead, figuring if she was going to be getting answers from anyone, it was going to be from herself- directly. Even if she had to butt heads and go tooth and nail with the woman. "What's going on with all of this? First, it's the kid and the ex-husband- which is a topic all on it's own- and now it's _this_? What's wrong with you- or us? No, it's you, because you're the one making these decisions, not me."

It looked like she had stirred the fire given her future self dropped the hand that had been holding on to Kenshi, and instead moved to cross her arms now.

"I'm not having this conversation while you have your tits out."

Okay.

So, she had a point.

Sonya turned her attention back to properly adjusting herself, clipping and zipping her bra back together after Kenshi had moved his hand- and despite the situation, she found herself missing out on the attention his hands had given her. "Hit me up after we're done here," she mused, feeling him take the initiative to pull her shirt back down, "- we can finish this another time."

"You sure about that?" Kenshi replied, mildly teasing her back. "I don't want to cause any trouble."

"I mean, unless you were a cause for the divorce-"

"You weren't," the elder Kenshi corrected, and then added, "- but it's cute that you might think that."

His remark was met with a punch to the arm by her future half, striking him between the metal plating of his forearms and the tied plate on his bicep. It seemed to be a vulnerable spot considering how he jerked away in response, only to laugh about it afterwards.

"Alright, you two get out of here," the General spoke. "I need to talk to myself."

It sounded odd to phrase the command like that, but the woman wasn't wrong either.

At the end of the day, regardless of the differences between them, they were still the same person.

"I'll catch up with you later then," Kenshi remarked, brushing a hand against her arm as he stepped out from between her and the cabinet. "Maybe in a closet next time, less room for guests."

Sonya snorted a chuckle and grazed the back of his head with her hand as he moved by, before she watched as he headed out of the room; he was followed out by his future half as well, no doubt after giving his own parting words to her future self.

Which left just the two of them now.

"When was the last time two Blades were together?" Sonya remarked.

"Longer for me than it has been for you- so thanks for reminding me," her future self replied, as the woman now turned to face her. "Look, I'll be straight with you, I don't intend on telling you much. We can play musical chairs all day but the fact of the matter is that neither of us know how this scenario is going to play out. We either win and kick you back to where you belong in the timeline, or we lose and the timeline gets reverted- and we get to do this shit show all over again. The way I see it, there's no point in trying to explain anything when either one or both of us ends up getting erased."

Rather pessimistic, but she could understand.

Wasted breath, after all.

"That's one way of seeing it, I guess," Sonya agreed, reluctantly at that. "But I think I'm entitled to ask a few questions at the very least. This is your life at this point in time, sure, but it'll eventually be mine too."

Her future self appeared to be thinking her case over, which was about all that she could ask for.

Without making a scene anyways.

Sonya hated to admit it, but even if the woman in front of her was just her in two decades time, this other Sonya was still the General.

And in the flow of hierarchy, even if they were the same, General outranked Lieutenant at the end of the day.

If the woman didn't want to answer her, they could fight all they wanted about it, but there was nothing she could do.

"You can ask, but I decide on what gets answered."

Alright, it was better than nothing.

At least this way she had the potential of learning something new about herself.

But now Sonya found herself having to wrack her brain to think of what to ask first.

"Is it weird seeing me?" she finally poised. "Seeing a younger you before you were successful?"

A hard hitter right out the gate.

"It is," the General nodded. "I forgot how young and hopeful I used to be. Naive still about how the world and the realms worked, but it was an easier time then- and my responsibilities were limited." The woman gave a pause, a shift in thought judging by the subtle change in her expression now. "I'm sure you've heard everyone calling me a hard-ass, a stickler for how things are done around here."

"That's the nicest way to put it," Sonya stated.

"The Tournament changes you, and the resulting fallout that comes after will haunt you even now," the woman continued. "It'll feel like you traded seven lives for one, for yours- and twenty-seven years later, you're no closer to getting those seven lives back."

Sonya didn't understand the context, the full implication of the words.

But she didn't have to; it wasn't her time to understand them, not yet.

But she could understand the look her future self gave her when she spoke.

Exhausted, but too proud to admit it.

"You'll ruin every relationship that crosses your path because of it- and everyone will make sure that you know it. But at the end of the day, the work is still there and it still needs to get done," the woman finished. "And no one else can finish it except you."

"Is that true or is that just what you tell yourself?" Sonya questioned.

"The Elder Gods don't listen and Raiden marked everyone I'm trying to help as an enemy to Earthrealm," her future self answered. "I'm third in line- and there's no one else after me."

Shit.

Her future just kept getting more and more grim.

"Okay so... why Kenshi then?" Sonya mused, figuring it was the only opening she could find in the conversation. As much as she preferred to keep the conversation focused on herself, she'd be hard-pressed to forget just how this whole situation had started out to begin with. "He seems pretty stable."

The General sighed and moved a hand to tweak the bill of her hat, looking less pent up now- and almost nervous at being put on the spot again.

Then again, given how the woman had acted before, this was probably the first time someone had directly asked her about the swordsman.

"Look, we've gone through a lot of shit together and survived. We've seen each other at our lowest points and things just... changed from there," the woman finally gave in answer. "I've known him since the end of the Tournament; he was one of the best people the Special Forces could've brought on- and he still is. When you work with someone for that long, eventually things change when you least expect them to. And no, before you say it again, he wasn't the cause for the divorce- that was an entire thing on it's own. What happened between us occurred afterwards, despite what some people might gossip."

"Is that why you're so secretive about it?" Sonya questioned.

"It's a complicated situation and I'm not going to go into it anymore than I already have," her future self cut off. "Here's a better question, why the hell were you two in here?"

She wasn't expecting the question to get flipped around on her now.

And given how her future self had described their ongoing relationship, it made her own encounter seem a little... cheap.

Maybe not cheap, but it definitely resonated with the feeling of having been caught making out with her boyfriend past curfew.

"We were both complaining about how our future lives turned out," Sonya admitted, although she had to give her future self some leeway with it now. "And you know, one thing kind of lead to another."

"I'm calling bullshit on that," the General replied. "One thing doesn't just lead to _this_."

"We were talking about how we both ended up with kids and how neither of us wanted kids," she continued, feeling oddly pressured enough to admit to. She had never been grilled by a General before, let alone even a Major, so it felt almost awkward having to answer to the Head General herself- even if it was just her by technicality. And she was complaining about the woman's life. "I made a joke about how we could fix the kid problem and that just initiated something between us. We didn't set out to end up here, but sometimes good things just fall into your lap.

To her surprise, the other woman started laughing.

It was brief, but still surprising nonetheless.

"Cassie wasn't planned, and neither was Takeda," her future self remarked. "So don't assume the same couldn't happen to you, regardless of how you spin the timeline."

Despite what was being said, Sonya found herself humoring the woman with a brisk laugh as well.

"I'll keep the image with me when I go back," she mused. "One last question, since you know this guy better than I do. Kenshi mentioned something about his future half being on the verge of a... meltdown, or something? Do you know what that's about?"

"He's not on the brink of a meltdown," the woman assured. "He already had one, he's just recovering from it- which was fun to deal with. I advise you start figuring out now what the signs for it are so it'll be easier to handle down the road."

"Wait- what are you talking about?"

"You said that was your last question and I'm through answering them," the General remarked, dismissing her question with a wave of the hand. "I suggest you head back to the coms room and get an update on the situation. Liu Kang and Kung Lao should be returning from the Wu Shi Temple soon; if they bring any new information back, we'll want to know what it is so we can plan accordingly."

And just like that, the woman had turned their conversation off and had switched back to being the Head General.

"Alright, alright," Sonya offered in reprieve. "Shouldn't you be going back as well? I mean, no one can really make any decision without you there."

"I'll be there," the woman assured. "I need to grab some spare hard drives from my office, the ones in the coms room aren't keeping up with the flow of data we're getting in. I'll grab you a spare drone from storage as well- it'll make it easier for you to keep up with what's going on around here."

"But you have a turret," she pointed out.

"And you'll get a drone."

She supposed she couldn't barter for a better deal- and she really couldn't complain either.

The technological advancements of the base were already beyond her sense of comprehension.

Here she thought getting an upgrade on her gauntlets was next-gen, meanwhile her future self had a mini-turret that could be summoned and controlled with a single command.

Hell, even her future daughter had a drone that hovered around her.

Sonya watched as the General walked over to the folding table between them and grabbed both of their jackets before the woman tossed hers over to her.

"Like I said, not a word of this leaves this room," the woman reminded.

"Not a problem," Sonya assured, as she slipped her jacket back on. "I won't say anything about you. _Me_, on the other hand."

"I said-"

"Oh, I heard you."


End file.
